Quake
by Agent S7
Summary: ...Pre Season 5...A deadly assassin shows up in Jump City. Could he mean death for the Titans? And how is the assassin linked to Terra's dark past? All hell has broken loose, and it is all defined by a single word...Quake.
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: I do not. Own. TEEN TITANS, yo

Quake

A Teen Titans Fanfiction by Secret7/Agent S7/Nukenin/"Ruff Rae Razor" (on CartoonOrbit ;D)

Prologue

The Terra Report

**It is a dark and stormy midday.**

**Garfield Logan speaking, biggest jerk/numskull on the entire Teen Titans squad. Otherwise known as "Beast Boy". I've been asked by Robin the Obsessive Writing Down Person to file a report on what has come to be known as "Terra incident". I hate it when he calls it that.**

**I just had a whole barrage of insults for Birdy the Boy Wondrously Stupid—**(I deleted that "Birdy" part immediately. Robin IS my friend after all. Though he does kind of suck.)—**but I don't want to get in trouble with our leader.**

**Little is known of Terra's backstory, so little we've had to second-guess most of it. We know that she'd been running from her powers all of her life, because she obviously didn't want us to know about her limited control over them, and we know that she was an outcast. Like most of us, actually.**

**I could relate to her. My mom and dad were superheroes too, and I haven't seen them for years. Most people used fear and hate me 'cause I had green skin, pointy ears and slight fangs. _Slight _fangs.**

**When I joined the Titans, I had found a home, where everyone was weird and different and great. I expect that's how Terra wanted to feel when she eventually wanted to join.**

**She told me a lot of things, most I don't want to tell. Eventually Robin guessed that Terra didn't have full control over her powers, and she was angry. She thought I had blurted it out, and left for about a month.**

**When she returned, somehow she had gained an amazing control over her abilities, easily whooping butt. What we didn't know was that she had been a spy for Slade in return for learning how to control her powers. When I learned that, I felt the deepest feeling of betrayal I ever have. I loathed her, and pretty much told her that too. She fled with Slade to join him. I felt horrible, betrayed and…well…heartbroken. If you're reading this Robin, tell anybody this and I'll tell Batman about you and Star.**

**Once again, about a month later, Terra had been forged to hate us Teen Titans, and she turned on us. With the help of Slade, she took us down one by one in her new Apprentice suit.**

Part of me wants to make a Donald Trump joke right now. I shove it down, and keep typing.

**Eventually, we cornered her and Slade, and her mixed feelings played with her mind. She wanted to kill us, but she loved us. It was horrible. When she attempted to join us, she discovered that the suit had been bonding with her mind, giving her control over her powers and Slade control over her.**

**Her powers triggered an underground volcano, and she sacrificed herself to stop it from erupting. Somewhere along the line she flung Slade into some lava**

**--**I backspaced—

**…into some magma and killed him. Trying to prevent the volcano from reaching the surface, she died. She turned into stone, like some fairy tale with no happy ending. Where the princess dies and the prince ends up alone and miserable.**

**End of Report**

I contemplated this report I had written about her, thinking quietly in my chair. As I walked towards my room, Raven looked at me in a "What's wrong?" sort of way. The good kind. Whenever I'm with Rae, I feel this guilt tugging at my stomach. I love her of course, but not like Terra.

Robin, walking out of his room (no doubt studying pictures of Slade. Sometimes I wonder what he does in that room alone. And that's a joke for those with either good or no senses of humor.) and spoke.

"Hey Beast Boy. How did the report go?"

"'Twas perfect. Added my mean, lean green charm and it…" I paused for drama. "…was awesome."

"Cool. Anyway, me and Star are going to see a movie. A 'moving slorbadarbb' as she calls it."

"Which one?" I asked, pretending to be curious.

It worked, because Robin answered. "That new Star Wars movie. She's interested if it will mention the war between the Kykornachans and the Blightar. Or something like that. I kinda think she'll be disappointed." Robin beamed.

I grinned back. "See ya. I have to go to my room."

He walked down the stairs. Oblivious to everything, as always.

I think I'm the only one who actually _sees_ things, with the possible exception of Raven. It's stupid, really. If I wasn't so obsessed with making people laugh I could actually be…what's the word? Oh yeah. Useful.

My door opened in such a way that would make any Star Trek fan swoon, and into my room I went. It's a fairly well lit room covered in posters of the latest supermodels, with orange wallpaper. There's a computer in the corner and an iguana on the right side of the room, who I adopted. It's name? Think of the most ridiculous name for an iguana on the planet.

Guessed it yet?

Ignacious.

On the left side of the room there's a nice, soft and comfortable bed where Terra used to sit with me. We kissed, naturally, but nothing more. It has average white sheets and a green comforter with all sorts of dinosaurs on it that I've had since I was five.

I collapsed onto the bed, then turned over, lying on my back. I twiddled my thumbs, combed my hair, and took off my shirt to be comfortable. Out of nowhere my head started to itch, so I scratched it.

I turned over, considering Terra for a moment.

Her golden hair went through my mind, her beautiful face and eyes near it, the blue eyes staring, pleading. As my mind sank lower and lower into sleep, I heard her whispering.

_"Why, B.B.? You killed me. Why did you do it?"_

The face in my mind began to melt and change shape, and it the orange and black mask that I despised. It was laughing at me. Slade couldn't laugh…could he? He could…he was doing it now…

Images too disturbing to write started to flash through my mind, of Terra, Slade, the Titans. Death, murder, everything _wrong_…

Few people can remember exactly when they went to sleep. I don't even exactly know. The words, the whispers and the horrible visions didn't help me to sleep either.

Somehow, right when I knew I was about to sleep, I saw her, smiling at me in her Titans outfit. I felt like her spirit was all around me, and a deep feeling of warmth came over me, calming me completely.

I slept.


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1:

Communiqué

(Huh. None of the Titans would guess that I know how to spell that.)

Have you ever been in a cave? Caves are unpleasant places. They're damp, cold, wet and tend to have bats flying around. I know, 'cause I've been one. Sometimes heroes hang out there, sometimes villains use it as their temporary secret lair. Either way, caves are a sign of something shady. And, at this moment in the story, I was in one.

I dashed across the lower cave wall, pulling a sort of Matrix move. Behind me was a blazing beam of energy, being shot by a furious Doctor Light.

"I'll kill you all!" he screamed.

It was obvious that defeat had warped his mind. Earlier today he had kidnapped Raven and countered her powers with some Jewel of Gavrok. Raven is hanging by her feet over a tank of sharks.

How original.

I jumped down to the cave floor and tumbled. Starfire was flinging bolts of energy, each exploding prematurely due to the Doc's mastery of light. Light blasted Robin with a blinding surge of energy and he rubbed his eyes, temporarily losing his sight.

Me and Cyborg ran up from opposite ends of the cave, which then became a dash. I leapt through the air, and, wind flying by, began to transform from a human into a monster. The instincts of my lion body took over and I dug my teeth into Light's arm. There was a flash of white light and I couldn't see. I heard a small beeping noise, and a horrified scream. There was an explosion of sound.

My vision gradually returned, and I saw the dark, dripping cave. The Doctor was knocked out, sprawled over the cave floor and covered with bruises and injuries.

"How did you--?" I began.

Cy pointed to his mechanical eye. "Heat seeking. I didn't _need_ to see."

I grinned. "You know, you can be kind of scary sometimes."

We untied Raven, who's face was red from all the blood that had rushed to her head. "I'm fine, unless you count the fact that my head feels like it was smashed by a garage door," she murmured, cracking a smile. She glanced at me and her smile faded.

---

When we got back to the tower, we watched the second Star Trek film, "Vengeance of Blonk" or something. We had some popsicles. For some odd reason I remember who got what. I had grape (and turned into an ape for some classic cartoon humor), Raven had cherry, which was surprising considering how she used to (before the almost-apocalypse) hate popsicles, Robin took a risk and had grape, Star had cherry, and Cy had orange.

That was the stupidest thing I've told you so far.

Let us never again speak of it.

We were all about to turn in, so I brushed my teeth, spit and walked into my room.

Raven was sitting there on the bed. For a second I thought it was going to unfold like a mature fanfic, but it didn't. Thank you, Lord.

"Gar…you've been troubled lately. What's wrong?" she asked.

I stared at her, surprised. I turned that surprised look into amused. "I'm fine, Rae. I'm alright. Why'd you ask?"

Raven frowned, aggravated. "I don't mean to disappoint you, but I'm not going to be that easy to fool. I've sensed your emotions, and you're miserable. You have been ever since my last birthday. Why?"

"Why do you ask?" I inquired, trying to turn the interrogation on her.

"Stop it. It's Terra, isn't it? If you're wondering why I know you're so upset, and I know you are, it's because of the incredible amount of emotion you've had since then. For some time I didn't have control over my powers, but since we defeated Trigon I can chose what to do."

"Get out," I said in a low voice.

"I'm trying to help you! If you keep these emotions locked up, they could cause you to lose it! Listen to me, Gar--"

"Don't you call me that! It's Beast Boy for you! Only one person can call me that, and…"

I found myself unable to speak.

"I'm sorry…" Raven murmured in the silence, a look of horrible guilt on her face as she walked out of the room.

"Don't be!" I shot the words at her bitterly.

I expected her to say something back. More like hoped, as the guilt of what I said sank in. I hoped in vain, because she didn't come back.

I sank my head into my pillow. It felt like a cloud.

_I was walking on clouds. All around me were bats dangling from pieces of string. They were school projects, of course. I eyes a particularly poorly drawn one, and it hissed at me._

_"don't you call me that"_

_Raven was crying in a cave on the S.S. Enterprise. The captain, Doctor Light, sent her to the bridge to await execution. I followed, worried._

_"I'm sorry," I pleaded. "I didn't mean to take your shoe!"_

_But that wasn't it. Wasn't it._

_I reached the execution bay, and it was stained in purple blood. It was a cave. There was a statue there of a girl with white robes and long violet hair._

_It all came back to Terra, and always would._

_"why do you ask?"_

_I began to dash through the cave systems, running as fast as possible. Raven was stone and so was Terra…next they'd get the T-Car…_

_I shouted as popsicle sticks flew at me. One sliced through my arm and I let out a shout._

_"You're weak. You never had a chance with Raven," said a voice I didn't recognize but I knew did not exist _here_, and never would. But none of this was about Raven…_

_The popsicle sticks flew by faster. One cut by my neck and I began to bleed popsicle juice._

_"Terra…" I murmured, as Slade's axe went through my head._

I let out a scream for a second, then I stopped. Dream.

No…a nightmare.

The Titans Communicator in my pocket shook. There was a beeping sound, and a mechanical voice.

**" :One: new text message. Displaying…"**

I pulled it up from my pocket and flipped it open. I looked at it, and stared.

**"go there" **it read. **"go there alone"**

Somehow, I understood. Where, but not entirely why. I couldn't tell the others.

I closed my eyes, feeling my bones and muscles changing into that of a golden eagle's, and took off through the window.


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Do we all remember what I told you guys about caves?

Tunnels are the same deal, only longer and more…tunnel-y.

It was dark, more than the normal cave. I have eagle-eyes (literally), so that was no problem.

I was driven as I walked, driven by the tiny hope that I would see her again. Somehow, somewhere. Like that musical about the gang war. I remember watching that with my parents when I was younger. I asked what it was like to be in love.

My parents? Their answer was along the lines of what I have to tell every damn reporter that contacts me: "No comment."

Love is an obsession with a single person, something that consumes every other thing that needs to be done. That bosses you around, telling you what to do. Oddly enough, no guy or girl can get enough of it. When the one you love is gone, you can't get over it. Your mind just won't let you.

I haven't.

Back to my story here.

I continued my steady movement towards the chamber. At this point I felt numb the cold was so awful. I made a mental note not to turn into anything cold-blooded and trudged on.

The familiarity of the place was amazing. I could remember every last dent and crevice on the walls, and the pain I felt in the pit of my stomach while dashing past them.

Warmth. I was getting closer to the chamber, which was bound to be searing hot.

I recognized the place now fully. Just a turn to the right. I felt warm, and not just because of the lava. A deep, good feeling inside. I would see her, hold her again. I took a few steps forward, and looked into the void-like cavern.

I was frozen.

There was nothing I could do but look there, where it was. Where _she _was.

The bits and pieces of the statue were scattered all over the floor, next to the magma pit. I felt the imaginary frost surrounding me crack a little, and I was able to stumble over to the stone remains.

There…an arm…a bit of her chest…an _eye_. All fragilely trapped in time. And a face, missing an eye, with a look of absolute horror.

I felt like I should be sick. I wanted to throw up, but I couldn't. It wasn't real. It _couldn't_ be real. She was _alive_. She had to be…

What happened next didn't make much sense at the time. Without the slightest noise, or even vague Spidey-like sense, I felt a boot sink into my neck. Hard and fast. I fell back, clutching my throat. It hurt like hell, and I could feel blood running down to my stomach. When I opened my eyes I caught my first glimpse of him. Or it.

The figure or creature or whatever it was, was coated in black metal armor. It was jagged and some parts even seemed to be dripping with blood. There were spikes protruding from the shoulders and gauntlets, and a helmet that would make Darth Vader piss in his pants.

It was, like the rest of the costume, cold and black, shaped in the face of a human being. The "mouth" was wide open and fanged. But the first thing I noticed about it was the eyes. Or rather, the eye. The one on the right was empty, but the socket was wide open anyway, modeled to look like it was gushing blood. The left was glowing red and bright, piercing into me.

It scanned me for several seconds, and a cold, raspy voice managed to slip out of the helmet.

"Target confirmed. Proceeding elimination."

It held out one of it's clawed hands and the tips began to glow brightly. In the hurt state I was in, it was a miracle I rolled out of the way. Five beams of light shot out of the sharp fingertips, each cutting into the rock that was supposed to be me.

I jumped up, ignoring the god-awful pain that doubled and burned my neck.

Armor. How the hell do you get past armor?

It leapt on me, digging it's claws into my hands when I tried to block the attack. I let out a yelp of pain and kicked it back. My boot hit solid metal, breaking two of my toes but causing the monster to fly back about five feet anyway, heading for the wall.

It used the impact to it's full advantage, kicking back and leaping towards me like it was weightless. I ducked and rolled, almost too late. The claw dug into my cheek as I escaped the hit, leaving an enormous gash. I shouted again in vain, feeling the blood all over my body pump only to leave the various cuts all over.

I was out of energy. I wanted to get up, but it didn't seem possible. I glared up at the demon standing above me. It looked pleased.

"Mission accomplished. Quake out."

I felt the last of my strength leave me, the monster blurred in and out, and then there was nothing.


	4. Chapter 3

Author's Note: Sorry for the long lack of updating. Writer's block…

Chapter 3

_My mind panicked in unconsciousness, trying to claw it's way out._

_"There is no escape," Quake's voice echoed, and I let out a cry of pain as my cheek stung and my hands burned._

"Stay calm," said a voice.

_How could I stay calm? The blades flew past me like shards of rock, cutting my wrists, my kneecaps. My neck._

"Beast Boy…stay calm."

_Why wouldn't she just shut up about being calm? I was having enough trouble as it is! How would she like to be trapped on the San Andreas fault, being eaten alive by Doctor Light?_

"Close your eyes and take seven deep breaths, in and out. Say the words with me."

_"Azerath metrion zinthos"_

_"Azerath metrion zinthos"_

_"Azerath metrion zin—_

My eyes flew open, and I looked around. My hands still stung with my cheek and arm, and I could tell I was shaking. I began to notice my surroundings. I was in that damned cave still…Robin, Cyborg, Starfire and Raven…

Raven? She had her hand on my cheek, muttering various incomprehensible words. I felt the pain ease and vanish.

"Beast Boy…you're awake. Good," Raven said, smiling slightly.

I still wasn't used to that whole smiling thing. Raven _never _used to smile, but once that whole "cleansed of evil" thing went down, she's been doing it all the time.

"What's with that?" I croaked, feeling a little blood trickle down my throat.

"The smile? I'm experimenting. Trying something new for once."

"No, I mean the hand on my cheek," I replied bitterly, still not having gotten over the whole argument.

"She was healing you. She did the same things with your hands and arm. It's a new power she's received." Who else could say that one but Robin?

"What happened?" Starfire asked, disturbed, like the other Titans, as to why this happened. "Was Beast Boy attacked by a supra-villian?" she inquired to Robin, the last word sounding uncomfortable.

"Someone tried to kill me," I said, my voice still, like the rest of me, trembling. "He…it…Quake."

"Gar, you're not making any sense," Cyborg said sympathetically. "My sensors show you haven't slept in weeks. You need--"

"What I need is her!" I virtually screamed. "Can any of you do that? All of your superpowers and you couldn't save Terra!" I gestured to the broken shards, which none of them had previously noticed, as looks of horror dawned on them.

"God." Robin blinked, backing away. Cyborg's human eye widened in terror. Raven put her hood over her head, trying to hide herself from the Titans and from the dead.

Starfire had a blank look on her face. She started to walk towards the bits of stone, and picked one up.

"Terra? Will you speak?" she said, quivering.

There was dead silence, and everyone's attention was now on Starfire.

"Please…speak…?" she said, her voice turning into a whisper. "At least…at least…" She hovered towards the side of the cave and threw up.

---

It was early in the morning, and all the members of the team had turned in for some very much needed extra rest. Raven stayed up to talk to me again.

"You need to go up there too, Gar. You haven't slept in about a week, and the injuries, though healed, will make it far worse."

"Yeah. I guess so," I conceded. "She's everywhere though. Terra is, I mean. Everywhere I look…"

She nodded, and I stared into her violet eyes. I grabbed her from the back and kissed her on the lips, holding her hand. The television blinked on and off for several seconds, and we separated. I glanced at her, and I saw her terrible expression, a look of mixed disgust and horror on her face.

"Get away from me," she virtually spat.

"I--"

"Be sorry! I don't care! All you see is her! Everywhere!"

The glass on the television broke, and she stormed upstairs. I slowly walked up too, to my room.

I could barely believe it.

What was worse?

That she hated me now, and might never speak to me again?

Or maybe…

That…

She was right.

I went to bed.


	5. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

The scene played through my mind again. My neck—kicked and bruised. First glimpse. Hands sliced open. Toes broken. Other nasty stuff.

All of this thinking was making me sick, and at the very worst time, because I was fighting an enormous freaky-guy made out of blocks that are usually used for construction, AKA cinderblocks.

Well, you have to admit, it's an original idea.

I morphed into an ape, punching the concrete monster with all my might. Bad idea.

I let out a grunt of ape-y pain and fell back.

C'mon, Beasty. You've seen worst.

Starfire zipped forward, her hands blazing with green energy, and socked the creature with much more success than an ape. The dent in it was staggering, and I had to smile. I began forward, transforming myself into a cheetah. Faster, faster, faster—speed felt like all that mattered. And the hunt. Can't forget about that.

Of course, I didn't make it. Raven smashed the concrete creep with a telephone pole, cracking it's arm. Which reminds me: who pays for all this stuff?

Finally, on opposite ends, Robin and Cyborg initiated a classic. The disc whirled towards Cinderblock, and the beam of energy…beamed. There was a blast of light, and the stone thing lay there, crumbling. Ouch.

Cyborg laughed. "Alright, we got 'em! Group hug!"

A look of horrid uneasiness overtook the entire group.

"Just joking. You guys take life waaaaay too seriously. Let's go back to the Tower."

"Yeah, I think we can order some pizza if you guys want," Robin said, beaming.

"Tacos." My announcement was sudden, and extremely unexpected. One: I hadn't spoken in days, and two: when it came to pizza, no one had the guts to challenge the Red Bird of Pappa John's.

"Uh…no Beast Boy. Pizza. Everyone agree?"

Starfire flew over to Robin while Cyborg walked to me. Raven stayed in the middle, frankly not really giving a damn.

"We have pizza _every day_."

"That's because we get it for free! Wayne Enterprises owns Pizza Palace, remember?"

"Meaning?"

"They back us financially," Cyborg explained. I raised an eyebrow in annoyance. "You always said for me to handle the money stuff, didn't you? So I do. But I still want tacos!"

"Can we not settle this with peace? Robin and I shall take the pizza, while the rest of the group will have tacos."

Everyone nodded in mutual agreement, and the deal was made.

---

The plumber exploded. You can't blame me, though. That's what you get when you have a video game crossover between Gundam and Mario. Exploding pumbers.

"Is this game not rated 'M' for mature audiences? I believe only Cyborg is old enough to be playing this game of violent sewage examiners."

"No one actually listens to that ESRB crap." I murmured, transfixed with the game. "Now leave Beast Boy alone. He must play game." I made a fake zombie moan and looked back on the couch. Raven was sitting there, reading a book of Grimm's darkest fairy tales. Starfire was on the couch too, only staring at the video gaming.

"Don't look at me," Raven said, sounding emotionless.

My character, without my own doing, leaped off of a cliff and I shot a dirty look at Raven, who was reading her book like nothing had ever happened.

I killed Sandpipe Gundam twice, discovered the Plumber Zero system…twice, and eventually killed Quatre Reberba Wario.

"This is the worst crossover game ever," Raven finally admitted. "It has no plot except for violence. The only spoken lines are 'I have to kill you now" and 'Ouch-a!', and the game looks like my little sister could play it!"

"But you don't…_have_ a little sister."

"I know."

The doorbell rang, interrupting this most urgent conversation.

"Pizza. I'll get it!" Robin exclaimed. The taco-lords (me, Cy and Raven) had fortunately already eaten. Tacos.

He dashed to the door, an enormous grin on his face. Raven stared at him with an odd look on her face.

"What, do you like _him_ now?" I muttered. My giant robot's head fell off as I said this, then an enemy Gundam picked it up. Pulled the pilot out, and ate him. Robin was walking back in. Raven was rolling her eyes at the game and trying desperately to read the book up into this point, but when Robin walked in she had the same look as when he left.

I turned away.

"Hey, Star! The pizza's--"

I turned my head immediately. Robin screamed as the pizza box and everything ten feet of it were engulfed in a cloud of fire. I watched in pure terror as the smoke cleared. There was low breathing noise coming from what looked somewhat like Robin.

"I can't breath," I admitted. "I can't…"

Raven looked at me, worry in her eyes. Did she know this was going to happen? "Breath." The panic attack ended, and she turned to Robin. "I'm going to heal him. Call the hospital."

"What was the…Robin!"

Tears streamed down.

The Titan codenamed Robin was out of action, and could be forever.


	6. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

The image tore at me. Robin, crumpled on the floor. The floor around him looked like someone had spilled some thick red punch, and the thought of it made my stomach lurch in pain.

I didn't want to look at Robin anymore.

"My healing powers…something's hindering them. Something's wrong…they're working, but not as well as they should be," Raven said, but the voice was quieted by the voices of the random thoughts in my mind.

_Second casualty…_

_Didn't he deserve it?_

_No…not the Boy Wonder._

_…Blundered…_

_Red Robin…Red Robin…Red Robin…_

I felt my stomach sinking and my spine freezing. It couldn't be happening…it just couldn't.

I felt a jolt of pain in my mind and I crumpled to the floor.

---

My consciousness went off, not entirely, but enough for me to hear and smell but not think.

The noise was a low humming voice, emanating from all across the place. The scent…I had been many animals who knew had been given the gift of smell. It smelled like death, cold chemicals that burned and played general havoc with the nose.

My eyes opened, along with my thoughts. I was on a comfy but hardy object, and as my vision cleared, I realized it was a couch. I was in a beige-colored waiting room with a couple snack machines, some old magazines and my friends, sitting in chairs of their own. If you ever see a 6 foot cyborg sitting in a reclinable chair, you're probably insane…or me.

"Beast Boy…you had passed out. We were all very worried."

That speech thing was getting annoying.

"Why…am I…_here?_" I asked drowsily.

"If you mean here as opposed to a hospital room, it wasn't important enough. It was a system shock, yeah, but it was a natural reaction to the situation, and you handled it pretty well." Cyborg looked confident, but I frowned. Sure. I _only_ fainted in shock. Aren't I just the spitting image of composed?

"Alright…what about Robin?"

"He's…alright. He's in trouble, though. There was some kind of poison in the bomb that's stopping the healing. We need an antidote, and soon," Raven replied.

One of the machines in another room beeped, and I glanced around the guest room. The place was desolate, if someone could say that about a waiting room. Everyone was quiet for some time.

"We should really go back to Titans Tower," Raven admitted. "There's nothing we can do right now."

There was another silence, and I spoke up.

"Sure…but I have to go somewhere first."

---

It was dark out now, about eleven o' clock. I didn't really care, though.

The cruel night tore at me, taking vicious swipes occasionally. I still ignored it. As I've said over and over, I _have_ suffered worse. So had the people around me, mainly because they were all six feet under. The wind went by, and I walked to the grave. There was no one under it, which was different from most plots.

All the other gravestones looked like a grey, moving mass in the wind. Except for this one. A sharp pain jabbed my chest, one that wasn't caused by any swords or claws. It was me. I was broken, as I always had been since she had left.

I wasn't finished. Empty. The words burned into my eyes. There was no birth date, only one of death. No last name, no past…just a name we didn't even know was real, and a meaningless inscription that was worth about as much as the dirt I was standing on. It took me several more seconds of thought before I realized there was someone standing right next to me.

"Who's there?"

I turned to the man next to me. He was reaching his early fifties (or appeared so), grey hair on his goatee and mustache. His eyes glittered, or, perhaps more menacingly, his eye. The other was simply a black eye-patch. When I looked at him he seemed to take no notice of me, just looking down at the stone in front of him. It dark black, speckled with grey. Inscribed on the stone, in an arch, was the name "Jericho Wilson".

"Another mourner," the man said. His voice sounded oddly familiar, and he smiled. "The famous Beast Boy, I presume? I've heard about what happened to your friend Robin…it's awful."

"How do you know about that?" I demanded. "The press hasn't even found out yet."

"I know a lot of things, Garfield. Too many, one could say. I know all about you. Robin. Raven. And the rest of your friends. I have many sources which I use regularly, although I have…retired."

There was no orange and black mask, but I could see it just the same as shadows cast on his weary face. He chuckled sadly. "You're wondering what I'm doing here? I simply wanted to mourn, to talk…and to make a deal."

I just looked blankly at him. Of all of the things that could happen in the world, this was the one I'd least expected.

"You…killed Terra," I barely managed to say.

"One of the things I wanted to talk about. I've seen death many times in this unnaturally long life of mine. My daughter…my two sons. My wife. And my adopted daughter, Terra. It's not something one can easily live with, but I've managed something close enough to life for me to be slightly comfortable.

"You loved Terra, in a way I could never love anyone. You took care of her, pulled her from me and saved her soul. I owe you."

"So, what, are you a new man after being killed twice? Did it hurt?" I added maliciously.

"Oh…yes it did." He spoke as if it were a joke. "But not as much as living the way I have been for all these years."

"You're twisted."

"And I don't know that? Speaking of which, you're well on your way to becoming as insane as I am. You're being consumed by bitterness. For one, I don't want to see any whipper-snappers becoming mass murderers like me. My point? I don't think I have one, except for this: Hatred is your worst enemy. It took me thirty-nine years for me to learn that, and I've gone blind. Really, kid. You've got a lot more going for you than you think."

He smiled half-heartedly, pulling something from the suitcase he was carrying. The mask slipped on to his face, and the nameless man became Slade once more.

"Down to business. You and your little friends have been being hunted by an assassin I have heard of, one of the best."

"Quake," I said, filling it in.

"No one knows much about Quake…except for me." Slade held a small disc, shining in the little moonlight that there was. "This is an entire record of the assassinations Quake has made. It might give you the clues you so-desperately need."

"What's the price?"

"I want you to delete my profile on the Titans database. Make it look like I did it. That's all I ask."

My stomach nearly exploded with anxiety. I wanted to shout out that I would never do it. I wanted to kick him in the back of the head and beat him to death. But I also wanted revenge. For Robin. For Terra. For me.

"Deal."


End file.
